Horror movies can reveal much more than we realize about psychological disorders—and clinical psychology has a lot to teach us about horror. Our fears—mortality, failure, loneliness—can be just as motivating as our wishes or desires. Horror movie characters uniquely reveal all of these to a wide audience. If explored in an honest and serious manner, our fears have the potential to teach us a great deal about ourselves, our culture, and certainly other people. From psychologist, researcher, and horror film enthusiast Brian A. Sharpless comes Monsters on the Couch, an exploration into the real-life psychological disorders behind famous horror movies. Accounts of clinical syndromes every bit as dramatic as those on the silver screen are juxtaposed with fascinating forays into the science and folklore behind our favorite movie monsters. Horror fans may be obsessed with vampires, werewolves, zombies, and the human replacements from Invasion of the Body Snatchers, but even many medical professions may not know about the corresponding conditions of Renfield's syndrome, clinical lycanthropy, Cotard's syndrome, and the misidentification delusions. Some of these disorders are surprisingly common in the general population. For instance, a number of people experience isolated sleep paralysis, a disorder implicated in ghost and alien abduction beliefs. As these tales unfold, readers not only learn state-of-the-art psychological science but also gain a better understanding of history, folklore, and how Hollywood often—but not always—gets it wrong when tackling these complex topics.

Sleep paralysis (characterized by an inability to move, conscious awareness in sleep, and vivid hallucinations) has a history that spans over two-thousand years. However, despite this expansive history, it is only in recent times that a scientific evidence base has accrued. The authors explore sleep paralysis from a range of historical perspectives, placing the phenomenon in a context relevant to clinicians and researchers. Dr. Brian Sharpless and Dr. Karl Doghramji's Sleep Paralysis: Historical, Psychological, and Medical Perspectives examines and synthesizes theoretical and empirical literature on sleep disorder. With a focus on phenomenology and prevalence of sleep paralysis, the book situates the disorder within cultural and historical contexts. Sleep paralysis is found to be a well-described, REM-based phenomenon with a number of known behavioral and psychological correlates. The authors compile and summarize the associated features, diagnostic issues, prevalence rates, and potential etiologies. The clinical ramifications of sleep paralysis are also thoroughly examined in this important text. The authors evaluate the available assessment instruments, provide guidance on differential diagnosis, and compile what is known about its clinical impacts. Although a number of individuals are troubled by sleep paralysis, no empirically-established treatments are available. The authors present medication guidance and a brief five session cognitive-behavioral treatment (with a corresponding adherence measure and assessment instrument) for chronic cases.

Many fascinating and important psychological disorders are either omitted from our current diagnostic systems or rarely covered during graduate or medical training. As a result, most mental health students and trainees are never taught to identify, diagnose, or treat them. This lack of attention has real-world consequences not only for patients, but for basic science as well. Unusual and Rare Psychological Disorders collects and synthesizes the scientific and clinical literatures for 21 lesser-known conditions. The coverage is broad, ranging from exploding head syndrome and koro to body integrity identity disorder and persistent genital arousal disorder. All chapters follow a uniform structure and introduce each disorder with a vivid clinical vignette. After discussing the historical and cultural contexts for the disorder, authors describe the typical symptoms, associated features, current role in diagnostic systems (if any), and etiologies. Clinically relevant information on assessment and differential diagnosis is also provided. Finally, authors review the treatment options and suggest future directions for research. This unique and engaging volume will not only be a useful resource for researchers and clinicians who already possess expertise in the more well-known manifestations of psychopathology, but it will also be of interest to students and trainees in the mental health professions.